If there was any hope that Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier and WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert could patch things up and move forward as they both try to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement, well, that doesn't seem too likely.
ESPN reports that the relationship between the MVP runner-up and Engelbert is “beyond repair” after Engelbert denied making the comments Collier accused her of in her scathing statement after the Lynx' playoff elimination.
Collier was reportedly open to meeting with Engelbert prior to the WNBA Finals, but she canceled the meeting after Engelbert took the podium before Game 1 and said, “I did not make those comments.”
Collier had accused her of saying Caitlin Clark owes the money she makes in sponsorships to the platform the league gives her, that other players should be thankful for the TV deal Engelbert negotiated, and that only “losers” complain about officiating.
“There is a lot of inaccuracy out there through social media and all of this reporting,” Engelbert said. “I highly respect the players. There is a lot of emotion and passion going on right now between collective bargaining. … I am obviously disheartened.”
Cathy Engelbert defiant head of WNBA CBA deadline
Even as players around the league have come out in support of Collier, Engelbert indicated in her press conference that she does not plan to step down.
“I've never been a quitter,” she said. “Never shied away from tough situations.”
She's up against it now. The current collective bargaining agreement expires on October 31 and if the owners and players cannot hash out a new deal, they risk a work stoppage just as the league has built more momentum than it has ever had.
And at no point during negotiations have the players ever indicated they were close to having their demands met.
“We continue to negotiate in good faith and remain focused on delivering significant increases to salaries and benefits for players while building a league that can thrive for decades for the benefit of all,” a WNBA spokesperson told The Athletic. “We already have several meetings scheduled with the WNBPA to move this forward and get it done in as timely a manner as the Players Association wishes.”
